Long Lake agrees to purchase causeway, dam wrecked in storms last year 

Town plans to set out on lengthy process to repair structure, restore beloved pond

By Zachary Matson

The town of Long Lake is under contract to purchase the causeway and dam that failed during heavy rainfall last summer and drained the community’s beloved Jennings Pond. 

The town agreed to purchase the causeway, dam spillway and a portion of Middle Island for $160,000 from George Carrothers. He will retain a parcel holding his cafe and kayak rental business. 

The transfer will enable the town to access federal and state funding to repair the structure and refill man-made Jennings Pond, which sits at the center of the central Adirondack community and plays host to various events.

“We plan on moving ahead and rebuilding the causeway and spillway,” Long Lake Town Supervisor Clay Arsenault said Friday. “People want water back in Jennings Pond.”

Arsenault said the project would likely take “years” and that it was too early to share cost estimates or timelines.

The town’s engineers in September estimated that a complete replacement of the dam spillway at the center of the causeway would cost $3.4 million.

The town is working with the Development Authority of the North Country, Federal Emergency Management Agency and state Department of Environmental Conservation about next steps and funding opportunities. 

A year ago this month, floodwaters flowing into Jennings Pond from Shaw Brook, where a culvert failed during the storms, “must have significantly exceeded the dam’s spillway capacity,” according to an engineering report.

Another downpour ripped across the Adirondacks this week, almost exactly a year since last summer’s deluge, and served as a reminder of the increased precipitation scientists are projecting in the region as the climate continues to warm. 

In the months following the dam failure, town officials suggested to Carrothers that the town owned the structure. But after research, officials this year acknowledged that Carrothers had ownership and opened the door to discussions about a purchase, Carrothers said. He said it makes more sense for the town to own the dam.  

“The critical element is that purchase of the causeway by the town gives the town access to state and federal funding,” Carrothers said. “Our goal is to repair Jennings Pond. The most efficient and easiest way to do that was for me to sell to the town.” 

Considered a low-hazard dam, the structure maintains water levels in Jennings Pond, a popular community water body that hosts an annual kids fishing derby and fireworks show.

Much of it is now covered in mud and young grasses. Arsenault said a small number of people have suggested removing the dam and letting the pond revert to wetland conditions but that the majority of residents he hears from support repairing the dam and refilling the pond.  

The town will continue public access along the causeway thanks to an easement across Carrothers’ property and will now own a portion of Middle Island, a small wooded island on the other side of the causeway and dam. A portion of Middle Island and another section of causeway will remain in separate private ownership.

“We are excited about rebuilding,” Arsenault said. “It’s what the town wants.”

Top photo: The causeway holding back water at Jennings Park Pond breached during floods last summer. Photo courtesy of DOT.